Catalog
2 Milliemes - Idris I
| Issuer | Libya |
|---|---|
| Year | 1952 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Pound (1951-1971) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Right-facing effigy of King Idris I, depicted wearing a traditional Libyan kufiya headdress with trailing cloth, his draped bust truncated at the lower field. The portrait, modelled in high relief by engraver Paul Vincze, conveys a dignified and naturalistic likeness. Arabic legends flank the effigy on both sides of the field, with the engraver's initials P.V. incuse at the lower truncation. The design is enclosed by a finely beaded border. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | إدريس الأول ملك ليبيا P.V. (Translation: Idris the First, King of Libya P.V.) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Libya's first independent coinage, issued in 1952, came just months after the country achieved independence in December 1951 — the first nation to gain independence through a United Nations resolution. Idris I, formerly the Emir of Cyrenaica, became king of a federal state that had been administratively divided between a British-supervised north and a French-supervised Fezzan only recently unified on paper.
The bronze millieme series was produced at the Royal Mint in London under contract.